BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (9/17/16) – The Arkansas State volleyball squad took home a 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 25-17) win over IUPUI after falling to Cleveland State 3-1 (14-25, 30-32, 25-22, 27-29) in the morning at the last day of the Hoosier Classic being held at University Gym in Bloomington, Ind.

Carlisa May was named to the all-tournament team for the event as she tallied 49 kills over the three matches for a 4.45 per set average. She hit .264 and added five digs with three blocks defensively.

The Red Wolves (8-6) raced out to a 10-4 advantage in set one after a Jessica Uke kill that forced the Jaguars (4-11) to call a timeout. A Kenzie Fields service ace stretched the lead out for A-State to 16-9 and saw IUPUI call its final timeout of the set. The Jaguars were able to get within 21-15, but A-State went on a 4-0 run with a Brentlee Weaver kill ending the set at 25-15 in favor of the Red Wolves.

The second set was closely contested with both teams knotted at 10-10 after the first 20 points, but IUPUI was able to go on a 6-3 run to take a 16-13 edge. A-State scored three straight points to force a timeout at 16-16 and both teams keep trading points until it was tied 22-22. However, Arkansas State was able to win three of the final four points, the last coming on a kill by Fields, to win the game 25-23.

The third game began with A-State jumping out to a 13-8 advantage on an Anna Murphy kill and extended the lead to 18-10 after a Uke kill. IUPUI battled back to within 21-17, but the Red Wolves closed out the set on a 4-0 run, with two kills by Murphy representing the final points, to win 25-17 and claim the match by a score of 3-0.

“It was certainly nice to respond this way after the loss earlier in the day,” A-State head volleyball coach David Rehr said. “Murphy played tremendous this weekend and especially this match, but it was really a team effort in this win. It doesn’t feel great to go 2-1, but this was a nice way to end our non-conference season and go into conference play.”

Murphy led the team with 14 kills against the Jaguars on a .632 hitting percentage, while May provided 12 of her own on a .292 attacking percentage. Mallory Warrington dished out 36 assists and also added eight digs with five kills. Defensively, Markie Schaedig registered 15 digs, while Uke led the team with three blocks.

The Red Wolves got behind early to Cleveland State (9-3) with the Vikings earning a 10-3 edge. A-State could never get back in it as the Vikings won the game 25-14. However, set two was a much different story with both teams battling to a 9-9 tie. CSU got out to an 18-13 advantage, but A-State responded to battle back within 22-20 on a kill by Fields to force a timeout. The Red Wolves eventually earned set point at 24-23 and had two more at 26-25 and 27-26, but couldn’t clinch the set. The two teams wound up tied at 30-30 before the Vikings won two points to win 32-30.

Trailing 2-0, Arkansas State raced out to a 13-10 advantage in set three and appeared to be in control with a 20-15 edge. Cleveland State rallied to tie the game 21-21, but A-State scored four of the last five points to claim a 25-22 set win after a May kill.

The Red Wolves appeared to be in a groove by jumping out in front 17-9 in set four after a Uke kill. However, the Vikings clawed their way back to tie the set at 23-23. A-State earned the next point on a May kill for set point, but two straight points for Cleveland State put them ahead 25-24. A-State came back to earn another set point at 26-25 after a Weaver kill, but the Vikings earned four of the next five points to claim the set 29-27 and the match 3-1.

“This was a disappointing match for us because we feel like we should have won,” added Rehr. “It was a short turnaround so that was tough on us, but we could have, and in my mind, should have won sets two and four. We have to learn how to finish games better and win those sets, especially against a good team like Cleveland State.”

May led the Red Wolves with 15 kills, while Murphy (14) and Weaver (13) were also in double figures. Warrington handed out 50 assists with Schaedig leading the defensive effort with 30 digs. Murphy and Uke both had three blocks apiece.

Arkansas State returns to action Friday, Sept. 23 with its first Sun Belt Conference match of the season at Appalachian State. First serve from Boone, N.C., is set for 5:30 p.m. (CT).

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